Friday, March 28, 2008

Since son H made his first spaghetti olio e aglio for his big brother sometime ago.....his 'kor kor' fell in love with it .....and had been asking me to make this for him these days.......his usual white sauce were history for him.....and i gladly made it for him coz it is easy and i added some variations to it......

For those who are not familiar with this......i will explain it further......olio in italian means olive oil and aglio means garlic......so this dish is made by sauteing finely chopped garlic ( you can used sliced garlic too if you do not like it chop up) in olive oil til slightly golden and season with salt and pepper to taste... then stir in newly boiled and drained spaghetti to pan and coat it well with the fried garlic oil......

For variations.....i added 2 pieces of chopped anchovies (canned ones) to be saute with the garlic in olive oil and also some chilli flakes or black pepper...before adding the spaghetti.......top it with bacon bits or anything that fancies you to this dish .....and don't forget to add grated parmesan cheese before serving........here are some pics of my variations......

Thursday, March 27, 2008

This is another popular Malaysian dessert made from honeydew, sago and goes well with a helping of coconut milk......i made these for my boys who love this as much as the bubur cha cha.....but it does not take up much of your time as making the bubur cha cha....here is how i made it......

Ingredients:

1 honeydew melon

170 g sago pearls (small)

coconut milk from 1 grated coconut

salt to taste

sugar syrup

Method:

Peel the skin of honeydew melon......halve it ......then scoop out the seeds and shape the honeydew melon into small round balls using a metal spoon. Put remaining melon into blender and liquidised it. Pour into jug and chill it in fridge. Next , wash sago under running water in a sieve.....cook in a pot of boiling water til transparent......then wash under running water in sieve again ...drain well and put aside. If using freshly grated coconut....squeeze thick milk on a muslin cloth.....add salt to coconut milk. The coconut milk packed in tetra boxes can also be use. The sugar syrup can be made by boiling 150 g of sugar with 125 ml water til dissolved with 3 screwpine leaves added. Leave to cool before using.

honeydew melon balls...........................

Cooked sago pearls........

To serve this dessert....combine sago.....chilled honeydew juice and thick coconut milk in a bowl....then add syrup to taste. Add some honeydew melon balls ....and some ice cubes......and it is ready to be served.

Saturday, March 22, 2008

For making prawn sambal.....i made the sambal first......here are the ingredients for sambal:

10 dried chillis- soaked,

5 fresh chillis

10 shallots

1 tsp belacan or shrimp paste powder

1 tsp tamarind pulp

4 tablespoon oil

2 tsp sugar

1 tsp salt

Method:

Blend the chillis, shallots and shrimp paste in a blender adding a little water for the blades to move. Meanwhile squeeze the tamarind pulp in 1/2 cup of water and strained to get the tamarind juice. Heat oil in pan and fry the chilli paste til oil separates and fragrant.

To make the prawn sambal, add shelled prawns to the sambal and fry for 5 mins til prawns are firm and cooked. Add tamarind juice, sugar and salt to taste. Cook for another 2 mins and it is ready to be served with nasi lemak or rice.

Anchovies or whitebait can be added to the sambal to make ikan bilis sambal. Just remove the heads and guts of fish,then washed and dry it before frying it in hot oil til crispy. Then add to the sambal using the method as for prawns.

Friday, March 21, 2008

Nasi Lemak is a simple Malaysian breakfast dish.....but with the addition of other dishes such as fried chicken, beef rendang, tamarind fried prawn, prawn sambal...it can be elevated to an elaborate feast.....for lunch or dinner. Recently i made this well loved dish for lunch.....

For the coconut rice.....i used about 3 cups(600 gm) of washed rice together with a box of 200 ml low fat coconut milk and cooked it in a rice cooker......adding a pinch of salt.....2 slices of ginger......2 pandan leaves(knotted) and water to the desired level.....just like you cook your plain rice. When rice is cooked, fluff up with a fork or ladle....to spread out the coconut milk (santan) in rice evenly....and let it sit in cooker for a dryer texture for at least 10 mins.....before serving.

I served the nasi lemak with......hard-boiled eggs, prawn sambal, crispy fried ikan bilis (anchovies) and fried peanuts. I blanched some beansprouts in hot water.....drained and mix it with a tablespoon of onion oil and a dash of light soya sauce ....in place of the usual sliced cucumber which i do not have in my kitchen. I added some fried chicken nuggets to make it a wholesome meal.

The making of the prawn sambal......whitebait sambal......and fried peanuts will be up in my next post........

Thursday, March 20, 2008

It has been a long time since I had been doing any traveling. Now my children are all grown up and it is time for me to do some traveling and sight seeing. Especially with so many cheap airlines tickets on offer, traveling is a breeze nowadays......and the next step is to look out for some interesting places to see.

For an inexperience traveler like myself, I can get all the information I need with just a click away on my laptop to this Been-Seenwebpage whereby a community of like-minded travelers explored and shared their experiences from a creative and visually artistic point of view to remote and beautiful places like an example here:

Besides the beautiful places with their outstanding architectures and designs created with imagination and vision, you also get to meet exemplary individuals and spot innovative products and ideas.....like an example here:

Son H made this egg benedict recently to satisfy his hunger pangs......this egg benedict consist of poached eggs......crispy bacon and hollandaise sauce........

To poach the eggs....he added some vinegar (he uses cider vinegar coz ...do not have rice vinegar in kitchen....) into a pot of barely simmering water....then he gently break the egg into water to sit for a minute on very low heat....then remove pot from heat and let egg poached for another 10 mins.....in the hot water.......he said the eggs did not poach very nicely coz the egg might not be very fresh.....to get a perfect poach egg..the egg must be less than 4 days old.....

Some fried bacon and some toasted buttered bread with a drizzle of hollandaise sauce......together with the poached eggs....made up for this irresistable egg benedict.....with the soft egg yolk oozing out.....when you bite your teeth into it......enjoy it here........

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

This is an interesting piece of conversation .....about FAITH.... which i would love to share.......please read on..........

An Atheist Professor of Philosophy speaks to his Class on the Problem Science has with GOD, The ALMIGHTY. He asks one of his New Christian Students to stand and . . .

Professor : You are a Christian, aren't you, son ?Student : Yes, sir.Professor : So you Believe in GOD ?Student : Absolutely, sir.Professor : Is GOD Good ?Student : Sure.Professor : Is GOD ALL - POWERFUL ?Student : Yes.Professor : My Brother died of Cancer even though he Prayed to GOD to Heal him.Most of us would attempt to Help Others who are ill.But GOD didn't.How is this GOD Good then ? Hmm ?

( Student is silent )

Professor : You can't answer, can you ? Let's start again, Young Fella. Is GOD Good ?Student : Yes.Professor : Is Satan good ?Student : No..Professor : Where does Satan come from ?Student : From . . . GOD . . .Professor : That's right.Tell me son, is there evil in this World ?Student : Yes.Professor : Evil is everywhere, isn't it ?And GOD did make Everything. Correct ?Student : Yes.Professor : So who created evil ?

( Student does not answer )

Professor : Is there Sickness ? Immorality ? Hatred ? Ugliness ? All these terrible things exist in the World, don't they ?Student : Yes, sir.Professor : So, who Created them ?

( Student has no answer ) Professor : Science says you have 5 Senses you use to Identify and Observe the World around you.Tell me, son . . . Have you ever Seen GOD ?Student : No, sir.Professor : Tell us if you have ever Heard your GOD ?Student : No , sir.Professor : Have you ever Felt your GOD, Tasted your GOD, Smelt your GOD ? Have you ever had any Sensory Perception of GOD for that matter ?Student : No, sir. I'm afraid I haven't.Professor : Yet you still Believe in HIM ?Student : Yes.Professor : According to Empirical, Testable, Demonstrable Protocol, Science says your GOD doesn't exist.What do you say to that, son ?Student : Nothing. I only have my Faith.Professor : Yes. Faith. And that is the Problem Science has.Student : Professor, is there such a thing as Heat ?Professor : Yes.Student : And is there such a thing as Cold ?Professor : Yes.Student : No sir. There isn't.

( The Lecture Theatre becomes very quiet with this turn of events )

Student : Sir, you can have Lots of Heat, even More Heat, Superheat, Mega Heat, White Heat, a Little Heat or No Heat. But we don't have anything called Cold.. We can hit 458 Degrees below Zero which is No Heat, but we can't go any further after that. There is no such thing as Cold. Cold is only a Word we use to describe the Absence of Heat. We cannot Measure Cold. Heat is Energy. Cold is Not the Opposite of Heat, sir, just the Absence of it.

( There is Pin - Drop Silence in the Lecture Theatre )

Student : What about Darkness, Professor ? Is there such a thing as Darkness ?Professor : Yes. What is Night if there isn't Darkness ?Student : You're wrong again, sir. Darkness is the Absence of Something. You can have Low Light, Normal Light , Bright Light, Flashing Light . . . But if you have No Light Constantly, you have Nothing and it's called Darkness, isn't it ? In reality, Darkness isn't. If it is, were you would be able to make Darkness Darker, wouldn't you ?Professor : So what is the point you are making, Young Man ?Student : Sir, my point is your Philosophical Premise is Flawed.

Professor : Flawed ? Can you explain how ?Student : Sir, you are working on the Premise of Duality. You argue there is Life and then there is Death, a Good GOD and a Bad GOD. You are viewing the Concept of GOD as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, Science can't even explain a Thought. It uses Electricity and Magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view Death as the Opposite of Life is to be ignorant of the fact that Death cannot exist as a Substantive Thing. Death is Not the Opposite of Life : just the Absence of it. Now tell me, Professor, do you Teach your Students that they Evolved from a Monkey ?

Professor : If you are referring to the Natural Evolutionary Process, yes, of course, I do.Student : Have you ever observed Evolution with your own eyes, sir ?

( The Professor shakes his head with a Smile, beginning to realize where the Argument is going )

Student : Since no one has ever observed the Process of Evolution at work and cannot even prove that this Process is an On - Going Endeavor, are you not Teaching your Opinion, sir ?Are you not a Scientist but a Preacher ?

( The Class is in Uproar )

Student : Is there anyone in the Class who has ever Seen the Professor's Brain ?

( The Class breaks out into Laughter )

Student : Is there anyone here who has ever Heard the Professor's Brain, Felt it, Touched or Smelt it ? . . .No one appears to have done so.So, according to the Established Rules of Empirical, Stable, Demonstrable Protocol, Science says thatyou have No Brain, sir.With all due respect, sir, how do we then Trust your Lectures, sir ?

( The Room is Silent. The Professor stares at the Student, his face unfathomable )

Professor : I guess you'll have to take them on Faith, son.

Student : That is it sir . . .the Link between Man & GOD is FAITH.That is all that Keeps Things Moving & Alive.

Do you know that there is a global map that display suspicious events and terrorism that is happening right now in every country around the globe......and what made this map so special is that the incidents are updated every 310seconds....constantly ,24/7......and you can even move the map around....zoom in on any one area.....to get a clear view of what is happening there and the location. Isn't it amazing to actually see what is happening right now in your country or countries around the globe.....? To get to this map .....click here.

Monday, March 17, 2008

The last few days were not very good. for me....son H was down with a viral fever....and i had to pester him to see a doctor.....when his sore throat wasn't getting any better........ he was shivering in bed covering himself with a comforter ....not knowing he had a high fever.....and it is time for mum to be nursing him like a small child.....taking his temperature....sponging his hot body....making porridge for him.....and so on. I think all mothers are the same....worrying this and that when your child is sick.......and it was finally on a saturday evening when every doctor in town was resting at home that he agreed to seek help.....and after zooming around town for about 1/2 an hour.....not wanting to go back to the 24hrs quirky and cut throat doche last visited....we found a nice young doc in another clinic who prescribe him with antibiotics....

After 2 days.....i 'm not too feeling well myself today....a headache and bodyache....hope i don't get to catch the virus bug again....had my blood tested today ......at Pathlab.....with a rude and arrogant lady ......at the counter not too happy on her job.....(wonder why some people would employ such workers whom will they do not realise will put them out of business......on the front desk.)

Thursday, March 13, 2008

This is something like Penang loh bak.....but in a simpler version......i made this recently with minced pork. I added 2 tablespoon of finely chopped garlic.....3 tablespoon of light soya sauce....1 tsp of pepper....3 tbsp of cornflour....to 600 gm of minced pork.......mix well and set aside. Meanwhile cut out beancurd sheets into 18cm by 15cm squares.......wipe with a wet towel to soften it......then place 2 to 3 tbsp of seasoned meat at the centre of beancurd skin and roll up. Deep fried in hot oil til brown and cooked. Cut up into slices and eat it with rice .....dip into chilli sauce........(to have a darker colour of meat...add in a tsp or two of dark soya sauce)

Want to have a good laugh.......? Go for this movie then.......directed by Jack Neo.......i watched it yesterday and it was really funny and hilarious......actor Mark Lee really had the audience in stitches with his portrayal of an 'ah kuah' hubby .....it is an action pack comedy about a female 'ah long' (loan shark) played by Fann Wong who marries a dance instructor played by Mark Lee.........here is a trailer from YouTube:-

Monday, March 10, 2008

On Saturday..Lena my superwoman of a niece drove all the way to Penang from Kuala Lumpur where she works.....after only a day touchdown back from Vietnam on work assignment.....to attend a wedding. She managed to visit us in the evening ....after a tiring day......and off we went to Sushi King .....coz sis Karen said there is a promotion of 'buy one free one ' going on ......here we are enjoying ourselves with all the food and the bill paid by .....dear Lena. Thank you ....Lena for giving us another wonderful time together..........

Sunday, March 9, 2008

Recently son H cook this dish for the first time .....one of Gordon Ramsay's fast food meals......and it turn out to be very delicious.......the salmon was sprinkled with some sea salt on the skin side after scoring it with a knife and then it was pan fried in a little oil til the skin was crispy and then turn it over to fry the other side til cooked....

scoring the salmon..........................

pan frying the salmon with skin side down while sprinkling sea salt....

cooked crabmeat.........................

boiled potatoes.........................

mixing crabmeat with potatoes and chopped chives and spring onions....

with vinegrette dressing of olive oil and lemon juice........he added some water and groundnut oil to this dressing and pour some into the potato salad to mix into a moist texture........ some to be drizzle over the cooked salmon when serving.....

some tomato salsa........a mixture of chopped tomatoes....onions.....chives.....olive oil and lemon juice........to be served with this dish.

Ever since I started this blog somewhere in the middle of last year, I have been concentrating on how to blog and improve my writing skills. It never occurred to me that I will ever get the opportunity to earn some money from blogging.

And here is the opportunity I discover inSnapbomb....a new buzzin the blogging world. It is so easy to register....just add in your blog's url and you will be evaluated and priced according to your blog's base value. Then opportunities will be open to you and you will be paid accordingly for your given assignments.

So to my blogging buddies, if you had not sign up.....please do so or else you will have to miss a great opportunity to get some cash for yourself from this world of blog marketing.

Friday, March 7, 2008

Yesterday i made another version of baked cheese rice using black pepper sauce and the usually white sauce ..........here it to share with my fellow readers.....

Ingredients:

50 g butter

50 g flour

2 1/2 cups UHT milk

salt and pepper to taste

1 egg yolk

200 gm grated cheddar cheese....i add some mozzarella too

100 ml black pepper sauce...i made my own coz did not have bottled ones.

500 gm cooked rice

100 gm turkey ham

100 gm luncheon meat

Method:

To make white sauce....melt butter in a saucepan...add flour and stir with a wooden spoon til mixture turn white and bubbly....pour in milk while stirring...over low heat til it comes to a boil....leave aside to cool for 10 mins...then stir in half of grated cheese and egg yolk.

Then the next step is to buttered 4 to 5 ramekin cups or an ovenproof dish...then pour about 2 tablespoon of white sauce at the bottom of the ramekin...add 1 tablespoon of black pepper sauce and a layer of rice and mixture of ham and luncheon meat...top with another layer of white sauce...and 1 tablespoon of black pepper sauce...sprinkle with cheese and another layer of rice....top with white sauce and sprinkle with lots of cheese....bake it in a preheated oven of 200 degrees C for about 20 mins til top is golden brown.....

This morning as i was doing my marketing in the wet market of Pulau Tikus.....i met a group of people going round the market meeting the people and shaking hands with everybody......this is always the scenerio everywhere in the country when election day is just around the corner.....every politician standing for election that you see only in papers .....will suddenly appear before your eyes at this time of the year........i'm lucky to get a handshake with a prominent political figure from Penang......Yang BerhormatDr. Teck Hock Nan......who might be the next Chief Minister of Penang if he wins his seat in Pulau Tikus in the election tomorrow....

I was also given this card by these group of people which shows .......

Vote for 'me.'...............

Thank you ladies.......for your contribution.....(vote for me please)...Terima kasih....in conjunction with the celebration of International Women's Day and Election Day which both falls on 8th March 2008 .....that is tomorrow.

Hope everyone will vote wisely for the sake of our country's future tomorrow... and to those women out there including myself .....who must not be forgotten for their contributions and sacrifices made for the good of mankind........Happy Women's Day............

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

Its been nearly a week since i had posted anything on food.....just want to let my readers had a rest...from 'drooling' over food..........

Today i cook this lovely and easy dish for lunch.....and 'easy' one becoz mum had to spend more time on her latest 'beau'......setting it up and exploring the unexplored areas.....here i want to share it out with those lazy or busy mums and working species ....who had not much time on hand.....this is real easy....

Ingredients:

1 big can of sardines

1 can button mushroom

2 nos ripe tomatoes -quartered

2 potatoes - peeled, boiled then cut into chunks

1 big onion - quartered

3 to 4 hard -boiled eggs

2 tbsp tomato sauce

1 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1 tbsp oil

Method:

Heat oil in pan....fry the onions til fragrant......add in remaining ingredients to simmer on a low heat for about 10 mins.....Dish up and serve.....verdict: simple and nice.....delicious with hot rice.

After waiting for a few days for someone to send my laptop for repairs......i came up with a sudden decision.....i wanted to have a new notebook which i had been eyeing for quite sometime .....when i passby these notebook shops.......i can't wait for a better reason to tell myself......'now is the time to own one'......so off i went to Gurney Plaza to get my dream notebook.....here it is for me to show off...(that's what son H said of his mum)....envy huh?...buy yourself one when you earn your $$$$.....mum retort back....

my pretty luxury pink.....vaio that cost me a bomb.........but it is worth it .....coz this is the newest model (CR35G/P)...that had only been on the shelf for a week....with all the extras .....without any price increase compare to the previous model.....here is a comparison of the extras....:

Tuesday, March 4, 2008

And this awesome award is from an awesome person......bokjae....of an awesome blog..thank you. This award was presented to the bloggers who had the most frequent visits and comments to yr site.....guess i'm bokjae's most frequent visitor....now is my turn to hand over this award to my most 'frequent' visitors....or visitors....coz blog is still not that awesome to attract frequent visitors..eh..?

wow...50 questions tag is indeed a long one....this a tag from sweet Dora ofLife isMysterious ....thank you Dora for letting me review a part of myself to the world....Here it is:

1. Last person you had a deep and meaningful convo with? My niece..Iris's Convo.2. Where was the last place you went? Swimming in pool.3. If you could be with your first love, would you? nope.5. Who was your first crush???? My science teacher in primary school.6. What was the last thing you highlighted? My next blood test.7. Who is the last baby that you held? My grand nephew..Darren Gong.8. Do you know of any twins with rhyming names? Lina and Linda.9. Are you ticklish?.yes10. Have you ever worn a crown? nope.11. Last time you saw fireworks? Chinese New Year.12. Who is the last person you hugged? Son H13. Do you have a black dog? Have one..named Maxine14. Do you have a little black dress? I wear only black blouse and t's15. What are you wearing right now? short's and t's16. Who was the last person you talked to on the phone? my cousin brother..tiger17. Do you like coffee? Nope..i'will get a headache.18. Are you missing someone? yes..19. Reason behind why you last cried? i was lonely.20. How much cash do you have on you? rm 200.25. How many rolls of film do you need to get developed? none26. If you had to choose between a million bucks or to be able to change a regret? A million withno regret.27. What’s on your mind right now? a new vaio sony laptop...28. Do you have a deep dark secret? yes.29. Do you wish you were with someone right now? yes.30. Who was the hottest teacher you ever had? all my teachers were rather dull and strict.31. What was the last thing you ever got grounded for? never.32. What was your childhood nickname? none.33. Do you have any strange phobias? scare of snakes.34. Have you ever played naked twister? nope36. What did you fear was going to get you at night as a child? ghost38. Is there anybody you just wish would fall off the planet? Nope.39. Do you crack your knuckles? nope.40. What’s one thing that can always be found in your refrigerator? low fat milk41. What color are your bed sheets? light blue and purple42. How many kids do you plan on having? I already have 2 sons.43. What did you do today? blogging.44. How would you like to die? peacefully in sleep.45. Have you ever been in love? yes.46. When is the last time you went out of the state (province)? two weeks ago..49. Do you judge people? sometimes50. Generally, in life, what makes you happy? family and friends

The last few days with nothings much to do...i spend my time playing the piano....which had been turning into a white elephant collecting dust....since i started blogging the past half year. And while i was playing...son R who seldom talk much...came over to my room and said to me..."Wah..mum, you brushing up your piano skills now...when there is no blogging to do..? You had neglected your piano ...since you started to blog..." What he said is quite correct......mummy had been quite addicted to blogging....so its time to plan my time....so my two son's precious meal will not be neglected too in the future....!